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Original September 19, 1888 signed letter from Robert Closson Spencer (1829–1916), principal of the Spencerian Business College in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, written to William O. Haskell of Malden, Massachusetts.
The one-page typewritten letter is written on impressive engraved Spencerian Business College stationery identifying:
- R. C. Spencer — Principal
- A. L. Gilbert — Associate Principal
- Edward W. Spencer — Secretary
- Corner of Wisconsin Street and Broadway, Milwaukee
The sheet also bears a period “U.S. LINEN” watermark.
Content
Spencer thanks Haskell for sending him the September 17 issue of the Newburyport Daily Herald, which contained Haskell’s article entitled “Auld Lang Syne.”
The bulk of the letter concerns Spencer’s personal research into his early New England ancestry. He explains that he is searching for information regarding his “first American ancestor” and specifically discusses:
“The young John Spencer of Newbury…”
Spencer believed this John Spencer probably attended school in Newbury in 1638 and later, and asks Haskell whether the rolls of those extremely early colonial schools were still in existence and, if so, where they could be located.
He also mentions sending Haskell a copy of the Geneva, Ohio Times containing a view of an old Newburyport house connected with his research.
The letter concludes:
“Yours very truly,”
followed by Spencer’s large original ink signature:
R. C. Spencer
Robert Closson Spencer Biography
Robert Closson Spencer (1829–1916) was an important American educator, penman and business-college administrator and the eldest son of Platt Rogers Spencer (1800–1864), creator of the enormously influential Spencerian system of penmanship.
Platt Rogers Spencer's flowing handwriting system became one of the dominant forms of American business handwriting during the 19th century and was widely taught in schools and commercial colleges.
Robert C. Spencer continued the family's educational work. He became associated with the Milwaukee business-college movement and managed what became the Spencerian Business College of Milwaukee for approximately fifty years. National Register documentation identifies Spencer as one of the school's key figures and specifically describes him as the eldest son of Platt Rogers Spencer.
The school had originally been associated with the expanding Bryant & Stratton commercial-college network before coming under Spencer's leadership. It ultimately became one of Milwaukee's enduring institutions of commercial education.
This letter is particularly desirable because Spencer is not merely represented by an isolated autograph: his signature appears on the official letterhead of the Spencerian Business College itself, directly connecting the document with the Spencer family's legacy in American handwriting and business education.
William O. Haskell Biography
The recipient is addressed as “Mr. Wm. O. Haskell, Malden, Mass.”
A very strong candidate is William O. Haskell Jr. (1844–1888), a Massachusetts businessman and publisher. Winterthur Museum's Boston Furniture Archive records Haskell Jr. as entering his father's Boston business in 1865 and subsequently becoming a partner in William O. Haskell & Son, manufacturers of settees and school furniture. Around 1876, the younger Haskell left furniture manufacturing and entered the publishing business.
Haskell also had documented genealogical interests. The Library of Congress holds an elaborate 1880 genealogical tree of the descendants of William Haskell of Gloucester, Massachusetts, published by William O. Haskell.
That background fits remarkably well with this letter's references to newspaper writing, New England history and genealogical research. Because the letter itself gives only the name William O. Haskell, however, the recipient identification should be regarded as probable rather than conclusively proven without additional contemporary address evidence.
Historical Interest
An excellent association piece touching several collecting areas:
- Spencerian penmanship
- Platt Rogers Spencer family
- 19th-century business education
- Milwaukee history
- Newbury / Newburyport, Massachusetts
- Colonial American genealogy
- 1630s New England school history
- 19th-century newspaper history
- Autographs and manuscripts
The reference to an ancestor attending school in 1638 is particularly fascinating, placing Spencer's inquiry within the first years of European settlement at Newbury, which was settled in 1635.
Physical Description / Condition
Original one-page typewritten letter on cream-colored Spencerian Business College stationery, signed in ink by Robert C. Spencer.
Paper bears a visible “U.S. LINEN” watermark.
Shows normal age toning, mailing folds, handling wear, creasing and minor edge wear consistent with a document more than 135 years old. There is a noticeable vertical opening/tear or separation near the center portion of the text, along with scattered age-related discoloration. Please examine photographs carefully for exact condition.
An uncommon and highly displayable 1888 Robert C. Spencer signed letter, combining the history of the Spencerian penmanship family, Milwaukee commercial education and remarkably early New England genealogical research.
